Juventus sweating over the fitness of Paulo Dybala and Mario Mandzukic ahead of Coppa Italia final against Lazio
Juventus will take on Lazio in the final of the Italian Cup on Wednesday evening, attempting to win the tournament for a fourth successive season
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Your support makes all the difference.Juventus have the chance to seal the first part of a historic treble when they face Lazio in Wednesday night’s Coppa Italia final.
The two teams face off at the Stadio Olimpico, where Juventus will be looking to win Italy’s equivalent of the FA Cup for a record 12th time.
Although Massimiliano Allegri’s team wasted the chance to secure the Serie A title last Sunday, losing 3-1 to Roma, they remain firmly on course to clinch a sixth successive domestic league title.
And, having also booked a Champions League final date with Real Madrid at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium on 3 June, the Bianconeri have the chance to accomplish a feat only achieved once before in Italian football history – by Jose Mourinho’s Inter side of 2010.
In their way on Wednesday stand a Lazio side who have themselves enjoyed a highly-impressive season, with Allegri warning his Juve stars could not afford to lose their focus.
“It’s a final, after Sunday we don’t have any more time to lose,” the head coach, who has been linked with Arsenal, commented at his pre-match press conference
“We are facing a Lazio team who have had an extraordinary year.
“Small details made the difference on Sunday. At the end of the day, winning and losing depend on these things.
“On Sunday, we lost due to a lack of focus. During the course of a season there are moments you want to forget. Now, a new 20-day season begins.”
Key man Paulo Dybala is a doubt for the clash with Simone Inzaghi’s team, while question marks remain over the fitness of Mario Mandzukic, Andrea Barzagli and Dani Alves.
“After Monaco he (Dybala) came out tired. I need to be certain that nothing serious will happen to him," Allegri added.
“I need to assess both Mandzukic and Dybala. I will decide this evening. The 11 players who can produce the right performance will be out on the pitch.
“Against Monaco we played four at the back. I need to decide if Barzagli and Dani Alves will play, and how. There are a lot of things I need to look at today.
“Now we need to recover our nerve and mental strength. The tactical and technical sides don’t matter anymore. We still haven’t won anything.”
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